As someone who suffers from Multiple Sclerosis since 2008 and chronic back pain due to scoliosis since 2010, I am always looking for a way to help relieve my pain without having to use medications. My 2 most favorite solutions are the MedPro, and a full body massage, but I understand that the cost of these things isn’t always practical for everyone, so I wanted to provide practical tools that would not limit someone by price or location.
Here are 3 tips that can help alleviate back pain.
- Use a foam roller. Many of us have seen “10 things you can do with a pool noodle,” Well, lets makes this #11. If you have one of the thicker pool noodles at home, cut it in half. I Found a video below that does a great job of explaining exactly how to do this.
- Shoulder Mobility – I know this sounds strange, but when I was doing a lot of over head reaching or leaning forward stretching, I was finding that my lower back wasn’t hurting as much. When I was reading articles about this, I would have never made the connection to my lower back, but for me, it makes sense. How many of us have an old fashioned kitchen broom at home? Watch this video! You will have another use for your kitchen broom!
Whenever you press something overhead or reach above the body to pull something down from above, you’re extending the shoulder joint through a long range of motion. A person with poor mobility may try to compensate for limited ROM by placing their back into extension. This can cause spinal compression, pull the hips forward and cause back pain. Muscle & Fitness - Squeeze the Butt! – The first thing I think of are the men on videos squeezing and jiggling, well, there is actually a good reason for it! By engaging your gluteal muscles you are actually helping to decompress your spine. If you stand up in correct posture, by squeezing the butt you are relaxing the spine (essentially :-))
https://youtu.be/_MYGIfBhncI